Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival Celebrates Americana This Season!

The Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival will celebrate the power and artistry of America’s rich musical history in its sixth season, which will take place in the breathtaking Pocono Mountains from July 31 to August 9.

The festival will kick off the season with a tribute to legendary composer and lyricist Cole Porter, starring some of the best talent on Broadway. Among the world-renowned artists appearing this season, Jarrod Spector will pay homage to iconic tenors who made an indelible impact on the nation’s popular culture. To cap off the festival, New York City’s most versatile pop singers will present 100 years of American music. 

The two major productions will feature local students who were selected to participate in the festival’s notable education programs: Young Scholars and Student Chorus. Young Scholars have the opportunity to work one-on-one with professional vocal coaches and perform in their own show, the Young Scholars Broadway Revue. Student Chorus members receive group instruction from a professional choral director.

Artistic director Joey Chancey was inspired to salute Americana by his recent work on the Tony Award-winning show Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, which chronicles the career of beloved singer-songwriter Carole King. Chancey is introducing a festival orchestra this season to infuse the major productions with a robust sound and amp up the excitement. 

Following are the highlights of the Sixth Annual Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival:

Musical Theater

A Cole Porter Celebration Concert - This tribute to Cole Porter will feature the legendary composer’s classics from hit Broadway musicals such as Anything Goes, Kiss Me Kate and Can-Can. The show stars Broadway entertainers and the festival’s student artists. Friday, July 31, 7:30pm, Pocono Mountain East High School. Tickets: $40 preferred seating, $20 general admission, $10 child.

Pop Music

American Songbook: 100 Years of Popular Music - New York City’s most versatile pop singers will take the outdoor stage to present 100 years of American music. This exciting tour of American music history begins with classics from legendary composers such as Scott Joplin and George Gershwin and culminates with songs from modern day megastars including Garth Brooks and Michael Buble. The show features the festival’s student artists. Sunday, August 9, 6:00pm, Skytop Lodge. Tickets: $30 adult, $15 child.

Cabaret

Jarrod Spector: A Little Help from My Friends - Broadway star Jarrod Spector’s new show traces the legacy of the great male singers whose vocal prowess made them the rock stars of their generations, even before rock was born. Spector wraps his critically acclaimed voice around the songs that have made superstars out of more than a century of tenor legends, from pop icons Freddie Mercury and Michael Jackson to opera powerhouse Enrico Caruso. Spector starred as Frankie Valli in the hit Broadway musical Jersey Boys for five years and earned a Tony nomination in 2014 for his current role as Barry Mann in Beautiful: The Carole King Musical. Sunday, August 2, 4:30pm, Notre Dame High School. Tickets: $40 preferred seating, $20 general admission, $10 child.

Jazz

The Emmet Cohen Trio - At 24, jazz pianist Emmet Cohen has quickly become one of the most in-demand musicians in New York. A finalist in both the 2011 Thelonious Monk International Piano Competition and the 2015 American Pianists Association’s Fellowship, Cohen plays with the maturity and confidence of a seasoned veteran. An Open Mic Salon, hosted by Broadway veterans, Andy Gale and Mark Janas, will follow the performance. Saturday, August 1, Skytop Lodge, 7:30pm. Tickets: $40 adult, $20 child. 

Classical Chamber Music

The Broadway Chamber Players - New York City’s newest chamber music ensemble is comprised of the finest instrumentalists, composers, and conductors across the classical, jazz, and new-music fields. The group is unified by one common thread - they all perform on Broadway. Thursday, August 6, 7:30pm, Tennis Tea, Buck Hill Falls. Tickets: $30 adult, $15 child.

New Works Production

First Annual Developmental Theater Lab - The Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival is dedicated to supporting writers and composers in the creation of new musical theater works. To advance this mission, the festival will select a new work that is ready to be explored musically and dramatically and bring it to the stage with a professional creative team and cast. Friday, August 7, 7:30pm, Notre Dame High School. Tickets: $20 adult, $10 child.

Young Scholars Broadway Revue

After a three-week intensive vocal workshop, the festival’s Young Scholars will showcase their talents in the Young Scholars Broadway Revue, a perennial favorite among festival guests. Saturday, August 8, 7:30pm, Cohen Recital Hall, East Stroudsburg University. Tickets: $35 adult, $10 child.

The Full Festival Package is available for $210. Package holders are entitled to Preferred Seating. For information and tickets, visit buckhillskytopfest.org.

Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival Introduces Developmental Theater Lab

In an effort to support emerging composers, lyricists and librettists, the Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival will select a new work that is ready to be explored musically and dramatically and bring it to the stage with a professional creative team and cast.

Projects at various stages of development will be considered. The application deadline is June 1, and the festival’s artistic board will make its selection in June. Each member of the selected creative team will receive a $1,000 honorarium, transportation to the festival, and lodging.

The performance will take place Friday, August 7, at 7:30pm.  It will be produced by festival Artistic Director Joey Chancey, who is the Assistant Conductor for the highly anticipated Broadway revival of Gigi this season. Chancey recently conducted and played piano for the Broadway hit Beautiful: The Carole King Musical and for the 2012 revival of Annie. The production will be directed by Broadway's Lisa Clarson, an accomplished director and choreographer.

The Ballad of Little Jo (2013)

The festival has presented new works from acclaimed musicians for the past two seasons. In 2013, the festival produced The Ballad of Little Jo by Grammy Award-winner Mike Reid and Sarah Schlesinger, a lyricist and librettist who has garnered multiple awards for her work. Last season the festival presented WAS by Joseph Thalken and Barry Kleinbort. The 2015 season marks the first time the festival will present a new work from an undiscovered talent.  

The festival’s new works production is funded by a generous grant from an anonymous donor.

For more information about the Developmental Theater Lab and to submit an application, visit http://www.buckhillskytopfest.org/NewWorks.html.

The Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival, now in its sixth season, will take place from July 31 to August 9. The festival will present world-class artists in the fields of jazz, musical theater, cabaret, chamber music, and pop. Events will take place at Skytop Lodge, Buck Hill Falls, Pocono Mountain East High School, Notre Dame High School, and East Stroudsburg University. 

Ann Hampton Callaway to Perform at Buck Hill Falls

The Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival and Pocono Community Theater are pleased to present Tony-nominated entertainer Ann Hampton Callaway in concert on Saturday, May 30, at 6:00pm, at the Buck Hill Falls Tennis Tea. 

Tickets are $40, and VIP tickets are $50. VIP tickets include a champagne meet-and-greet with Ms. Callaway after the performance. Audience members are invited to attend a price-fix dinner at the Fairway Grille following the event. Reservations are required. The cost is $30 per person, excluding tax and gratuity. The regular dinner menu will also be available. 

Patrons of the Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival who donate $2,500 or more to the festival will receive two VIP tickets, and patrons who donate $5,000 or more will receive two VIP tickets and a complimentary dinner at the Fairway Grille after the show. Donate online at buckhillskytopfest.org.  

Ms. Callaway is one of the leading champions of the great American Songbook, having made her mark as a singer, pianist, composer, lyricist, arranger, actress, educator, TV host and producer. Her unique singing style blends jazz and traditional pop, making her a mainstay in concert halls, theaters and jazz clubs as well as in the recording studio, on television, and in film. She is best known for Tony-nominated performance in the hit Broadway musical Swing! and for writing and singing the theme song to the hit TV series The Nanny. Ms. Callaway is a Platinum Award-winning writer whose songs are featured on seven of Barbra Streisand's recent CD's. The only composer to have collaborated with Cole Porter, she has also written songs with Carole King, Rolf Lovland and Barbara Carroll, to name a few.

For tickets to the Ann Hampton Callaway concert, visit PoconoCommunityTheater.org/event/ann-hampton-callaway. 

To make a reservation for dinner following the show, call the Fairway Grille at 570-595-3535 and mention the Ann Hampton Callaway event.

The Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival will present world-class artists in the fields of jazz, musical theater, cabaret, chamber music and pop from July 31 to August 9. Events will take place at Skytop Lodge, Buck Hill Falls, Pocono Mountain East High School, Notre Dame High School, and East Stroudsburg University. 

For information and tickets, visit buckhillskytopfest.org.

Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival Seeks Talented Student Singers

The Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival is accepting applications from local students for its Young Scholars and Student Chorus programs. 

Participants in both programs will perform in the festival’s two major productions alongside Broadway entertainers.  They will rehearse for the shows with a professional creative team, including the festival’s artistic director Joey Chancey, a Broadway music director, conductor and pianist. Both programs are offered free to students.

Students accepted into the Young Scholars program will have the opportunity to train one-on-one with professional vocal coaches who have worked with some of the biggest stars on Broadway. After a three-week intensive vocal workshop beginning on July 20, the Young Scholars will showcase their talents in the Young Scholars Broadway Revue on August 8. They will also perform in the festival’s two major productions on July 31 and August 9. Applications for the Young Scholars program are due on April 11, and live auditions will take place on April 18 and April 25. 

Student Chorus members will receive group instruction with a professional choral director to prepare for the festival’s two major productions. Rehearsals will take place from July 6 to August 8, with performances on July 31 and August 9. Applications for the Student Chorus program are due May 15, and a live audition is not required.

The Young Scholars program is open to students in grades 9 to 12, and the Student Chorus program is open to students in grades 6 to 12.  

The Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival, now in its sixth season, will take place from July 31 to August 9. The festival will present world-class artists in the fields of jazz, musical theater, cabaret, chamber music, and pop. Events will take place at Skytop Lodge, Buck Hill Falls, Pocono Mountain East High School, Notre Dame High School, and East Stroudsburg University. Tickets will go on sale in April.  

For more information about the Young Scholars and Student Chorus programs and to submit an application, visit http://www.buckhillskytopfest.org/Education.html.

Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival Names Jacob Shoesmith-Fox General Manager

The Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival is pleased to announce the promotion of Jacob Shoesmith-Fox to the role of general manager. Jacob has been the festival’s company manager since 2012.

Jacob, a native of Canadensis, is the founding artistic director of Theatrical Gems, an award-winning, non-profit theatre company. Now in its third season, Theatrical Gems performs at the Evergreen Community Charter School in Cresco, PA. The company has also produced works in New York City, including off-Broadway benefits for the Actors Fund, and multiple world premieres in the New York International Fringe Festival.

An award-winning sound designer and accomplished Dramaturg, Jacob has directed productions of Bye Bye Birdie and Man of La Mancha in Pennsylvania.  In New York City, he has directed high-profile benefits for the Actors Fund featuring Broadway talent, including the first New York revivals of Irving Berlin’s Mr. President and Cy Coleman's Wildcat and a production of Meredith Willson's Miracle on 34th Street: the Musical. He has also directed various readings and workshops and was the assistant director of Are We Writing Loud Enough, a special event to benefit the Education Department of the Tony Award-winning Vineyard Theatre off-Broadway.  

Jacob serves on the Board of Directors for the Northeastern Pennsylvania Theatrical Alliance (NEPTA), a coalition of theaters and arts advocates representing eight counties. In addition to his work in the arts, Jacob is a teacher at Evergreen Community Charter School in Cresco, PA. He has a B.S. in Arts Administration with a concentration in Non-Profit Theatre Management, and an M.S.ED in Secondary Education, both from Wagner College on Staten Island. 

The Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival will present world-class artists in the fields of jazz, musical theater, cabaret, chamber music, and pop. Events will take place at Skytop Lodge, Buck Hill Falls, Pocono Mountain East High School, Notre Dame High School, and East Stroudsburg University. Tickets will go on sale in April.  

For more information, visit buckhillskytopfest.org.

Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival Names Joey Chancey Artistic Director

The Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival has tapped prominent Broadway conductor Joey Chancey to lead the festival’s highly anticipated sixth season, which will take place from July 31 to August 9 at venues throughout the Pocono Mountains region. 

Chancey, a sought after music director, pianist and conductor, is currently playing piano and conducting for the Tony Award-winning Broadway show Beautiful: The Carole King Musical. Chancey replaces Patrick Vaccariello, who will be supervising the Spring Spectacular at Radio City Music Hall and music directing the Tony Awards for the second year in a row. Vaccariello will remain on the festival’s artistic board.

To kick off the festival on Friday, July 31, Chancey will present a stunning musical theater production starring Broadway performers and the festival’s student artists. An exhilarating concert starring New York City’s most versatile pop singers will cap the event on Sunday, August 9. Chancey plans to introduce a festival orchestra this season to infuse the major productions with a robust sound and amp up the excitement. 

In addition to Beautiful, Chancey conducted and played piano for the 2012 Broadway revival of Annie, and served as musical director for the National Tours of La Cage Aux Folles, A Chorus Line and The Wizard of Oz. In addition, he has played piano for The Wedding Singer, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and White Christmas tours. 

Internationally, Chancey has conducted Direct From Broadway, a Symphonic Concert Tour of Australia featuring musical theater star Anthony Warlow and Tony Award-winner Faith Prince. The concert was accompanied by a thirty-two piece orchestra and played to sold out audiences across the country, including the Sydney Opera House. He has also conducted the International Company of A Chorus Line in Tokyo, Japan. 

Some of Chancey’s favorite credits include conducting The Music Man in concert with some of Broadway’s biggest stars, including Laura Osnes, Santino Fontana, Ann Harada and Andrew Keenan-Bolger; Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the Fabulous Fox Theater in Atlanta; A Closer Walk With Patsy Cline starring Gail Bliss; and Smokey Joe’s Cafe at the Alhambra Theater. He has conducted and accompanied for TV stars Jane Lynch and George Hamilton and Broadway's Jessie Mueller, Brian Stokes Mitchell and Christopher Sieber. Chancey is a native of Jacksonville, Florida, and holds a Bachelors of Music in Piano from Shenandoah Conservatory of Music. He currently resides in New York City. 

The Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival will present world-class artists in the fields of jazz, musical theater, cabaret and chamber music. Events will take place at Skytop Lodge, Buck Hill Falls, Pocono Mountain East High School, Notre Dame High School, and East Stroudsburg University. Tickets will go on sale in April.  

The True Story of Dorothy Gael?

New Works Production: WAS
What was Dorothy Gael's life like before she journeyed to the fabled Land of Oz? Find out when acclaimed composer Joseph Thalken (left) and award-winning lyricist Barry Kleinbort (right) premiere a new version of their popular musical WAS. The show stars Broadway performers and features the festival's Young Scholars. John Dias directs. 
Saturday, August 9, 7:30pm
Notre Dame High School
Adult $45, Child $15
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Come to the Cabaret: A Celebration of Kander & Ebb
Broadway is coming to the Pocono Mountains! Patrick Vaccariello, festival artistic director and music director of Cabaret on Broadway, directs this spectacular tribute to the legendary songwriting team of Kander & Ebb. The production stars performers and musicians from the Broadway stage and features the festival's Student Chorus.
Saturday, July 26, 7:30pm
Pocono Mountain East High School
Adult $40, Child $15 
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Bon Appetit and Prairie Songs
Don't miss Metropolitan Opera star Victoria Livengood as iconic chef Julia Child in the comedic one-act opera Bon Appetit. Following the production, our student and adult chorus will perform Prairie Songs by Grammy Award-winning songwriter Mike Reid, who will narrate.
Friday, August 1, 7:30
Skytop Lodge
Adult $45, Child $15 
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